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1. Managing conflicts over Alberta’s land: Listen to the locals

   Appeared in the Edmonton Journal, November 9, 2015 In the late 19th century, William Pearce, an Alberta-based civil servant and long-time surveyor in the Dominion government’s Department of the Interior, became increasingly concerned about the tendency of ...

2. Ranching Realities in the 21st Century

   Land management in Alberta and much of Western Canada could be enhanced if policies ensure that property rights are well-defined and transferable. Disputes over the proper use of land have multiplied across Western Canada as population growth, increased ...

3. The folly of protectionism

   Appeared in the Calgary Herald Years ago when I lived in Victoria and manned a small office, a salesman wandered in and tried to sell me his particular photocopier. He noted my current machine was Japanese but his was Canadian. So obviously, I should ...

4. Want higher wages in Ontario? Attract investment

   Appeared in the Trail Daily Times Whenever some group claims that wages can be artificially boosted via government intervention, as one Ontario lobby group recently did, ask them this question: Can boats on a dry California lake float higher without ...

5. Alberta’s decline is a chance for other Western provinces

   Appeared in the Calgary Herald In its recent Speech from the Throne, the new Alberta government reiterated its plans to make life more expensive in Alberta. Over time, to recap: The new NDP government will a) raise business income tax by 20 per cent (to ...

6. Facts about Aboriginal funding in Canada

   Thinking hard about history can be a useful exercise if incorrect assumptions are reformed. This was one goal of the Truth and Reconciliation Committee’s report on residential schools, which, in early June, published a 388-page summary of its forthcoming ...

7. How have Alberta’s young adults fared?

   Appeared in the Calgary Herald When any new government takes power, temptations abound to do something different, merely to distinguish itself from the regime it replaced. That’s understandable political behaviour but overhaul too much on policy and you ...

8. Ontario’s decade of spending decadence

   Appeared in the Windsor Star The Ontario government has never made a secret of its desire to have the federal government help fund Ontario’s provincial budget. It even started its own think-tank with $5 million in 2009, which regularly publishes reports ...

9. Rent control will be a disaster

   Appeared in the Calgary Herald Rent control has been a disaster wherever it’s been tried. But this never stops politicians from suggesting it. Last November, the leader of the then-fourth place party in the Alberta legislature, now newly minted Premier ...

10. Grasping Alberta's budget problems

    Appeared in the Calgary Herald The new Alberta government has delayed introducing a budget until the fall, so MLAs will have plenty of time to think about how they’ll collect and spend Albertans’ money. Thus, to properly manage the estimated $48.4 billion ...